GitHub is making its AI programming Copilot free for VS Code developers — with limits

Microsoft code repository subsidiary GitHub has announced the launch of GitHub Copilot Free, an accessible version of its popular AI-powered coding assistant, now integrated directly into the Visual Studio Code (VS Code) integrated developer environment (IDE).

Recall that Github first launched its version of Copilot based on OpenAI’s Codex code completion model back in 2022, before the launch of ChatGPT and Microsoft Copilot, and has steadily updated it since.

The new free tier for VS Code aims to expand the AI-powered code completion assistant’s reach to a broader audience of developers — namely, those with only light usage needs and tighter budgets.

This announcement coincides with GitHub surpassing the milestone of 150 million developers on its platform.

According to CEO Thomas Dohmke, this move builds on GitHub’s history of providing free tools to the developer community.

Previously, GitHub offered free repositories, continuous integration/continuous delivery (CI/CD) minutes and Codespaces. Copilot Free adds another layer to these offerings aimed at casual users or smaller-scale projects.

Copilot Free also comes after GitHub provided free, unlimited access to the more fully-featured and less limited Copilot Pro ($10 USD per month per seat) to students, educators and open-source maintainers. The company says it will continue to offer Copilot Pro for free to these users.

Features of GitHub Copilot Free

GitHub Copilot Free provides users with 2,000 code completions and 50 chat messages per month, which are accessible after signing in with a personal GitHub account.

The service leverages advanced AI models, including Anthropic’s Claude 3.5 Sonnet and OpenAI’s GPT-4o.

These models enable developers to seek help with coding questions, debug existing code or implement edits across multiple files. However, for those seeking to use premium AI models such as Google’s Gemini 1.5 Pro and OpenAI’s o1-preview, they’ll need to turn to Pro and other paid plans.

The new free tier includes:

• Multi-file editing: Users can make changes across multiple files via Copilot Edits, which combines conversational chat with code generation.

• Terminal assistance: Copilot can interpret errors, fix failed commands and even suggest shell scripts through terminal chat.

• Custom instructions: Developers can define coding preferences at the project or editor level, ensuring consistent code generation tailored to specific frameworks or guidelines.

• Voice commands: A built-in speech interface allows users to interact with Copilot hands-free, using voice commands to prototype apps or debug code.

• Project context awareness: Copilot’s AI participants can provide assistance based on a comprehensive understanding of an entire codebase.

Availability and Future Plans

GitHub Copilot Free is available immediately in VS Code and GitHub.com. Developers just need a GitHub account to get started.

In addition to these offerings, GitHub is previewing an advanced feature called Vision Copilot. This tool enables developers to generate user interfaces from screenshots or markup, streamlining the design-to-code workflow.

While still in preview, Vision Copilot requires users to supply their own API key for access to AI services.

A Commitment to Developer Empowerment

GitHub’s introduction of Copilot Free reflects its ongoing commitment to empower developers. As part of the announcement, Dohmke highlighted the company’s mission to lower barriers for the global developer community.

The free tier complements a growing suite of AI-powered tools integrated into VS Code, offering practical solutions for everyday challenges like debugging, naming conventions and commit message generation.

For those interested in exploring the capabilities of GitHub Copilot Free, the service can be enabled directly in VS Code or accessed via the GitHub dashboard.

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